WASHINGTON, DC - House Majority Leader Steny H. Hoyer (MD) joined Blue Dog Leaders and Members today for a press conference on statutory “pay-as-you-go” (PAYGO), which will be considered on the House Floor tomorrow. Below are his remarks as prepared for delivery:

“Tomorrow, the House will have the opportunity to take one of the most important votes for fiscal responsibility in a long time—and I want to thank my Blue Dog friends for working so long to make it possible. We will be voting to send statutory pay-as-you-go legislation to President Obama’s desk.

“I’ve been a longtime supporter of PAYGO, because it has had proven success when it comes to reducing our deficit. PAYGO requires Congress to find savings to balance the money it spends and keeps our deficit from growing. With statutory PAYGO in place, any new tax cuts or entitlement spending will have to be paid for—there will be no more passing the cost on to future generations.

“PAYGO has a long history of bipartisan support. It was first enacted under a Republican President and a Democratic Congress, and it was renewed under a Democratic President and Republican Congress. I was sorry to see Senate Republicans reject it unanimously despite the fact that several of them had supported it in the past—but I hope it will win bipartisan approval in the House, where it secured 24 Republican votes last summer.

“PAYGO has won that kind of support because it works. Under President Clinton, PAYGO helped turn huge deficits into a $5.6 trillion projected surplus. Under President Bush, PAYGO was waived and allowed to expire—and his administration's record borrowing, combined with the economic downturn, has put our country in a deep fiscal hole.

“Today, more and more Americans understand that deficits and debt are not just threats on paper—they threaten our prosperity, our way of life, and our country's place in the world. By passing PAYGO tomorrow, we can stop digging our hole and start making the hard choices necessary to get our budget back under control.”